


Legacy

by Ilickrocks



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman: The Animated Series, DC Animated Universe (Timmverse), Superman - All Media Types, Superman: The Animated Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Confessions, Gen, Past Brainwashing, Past Torture, girl!Clark Kent, picking up the pieces
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-15
Updated: 2018-11-15
Packaged: 2019-08-24 02:34:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16631219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilickrocks/pseuds/Ilickrocks
Summary: After being captured and brainwashed by Darkseid, Superwoman is sent to conquer Earth.  Now, Superwoman has to pick up the pieces and decide where to go from here.





	Legacy

**Author's Note:**

> This has been hiding in my folders for years…figured I should finally release it into the wild. Its based off the 2-part series finale of “Superman: the Animated Series”, which aired way back in February 2000. Like the summary states, the basic concept is that Superman was captured by Darkseid, brainwashed, was sent to Earth to conquer it, and the final confrontation between Superman and Darkseid after Superman breaks free of his programming. Going back to look info up, I realized I fudged an important plot point, but considering I wrote this thing almost 14 years after the episodes aired, and that this piece might end up a stand-alone, I’m going to let that pass. And the only other thing you need to know is that this Clark Kent/Superman has always been female.

     Her ears perked at the deliberate crunch of gravel behind her, but she didn’t jump—she’d been expecting this.  “Come to make sure I’m not plotting to take over the world again?”

     “I wanted to see how you were doing.”

     “Mmm,” Clara grunted, not really answering his question.  She remained seated, gazing blankly over the Metropolis skyline, and after a few silent minutes she finally spoke.  “They buried Dan Turpin today…” she murmured, one hand gesturing in the direction of the cemetery.

     “I know.  I was there.”  He continued, acknowledging the look of surprise Clara shot him over her shoulder.  “He was a good cop, a good man.”

     “I know.  He was a good friend too.  They buried-  Buried-  God!  What did they bury?!” she cried out, her hands flying into the air before coming down and fisting into her dark hair.  “There was nothing after Darkseid- After he-”  Words failed her and Clara buried her face in her hands, gritting her teeth. There was a faint rustle of cloth, making her think he’d slunk away, so she was a little taken aback to find Batman seated next to her, his booted feet dangling over the roof’s edge next to her own, and she had to blink—this had to be the first time she’d seen this man sitting so casually.

     “Have you seen your parents yet?”

     The sudden shift in topics made her pause, but she answered his quiet inquiry anyway.  “Yeah,” she nodded, “after I…got back…  I stuck around long enough to make sure all of the Apokoliptian forces were gone and started to help with the clean-up…”  Clara didn’t explain how she had retreated to the family farm after seeing the countless faces wearing expressions of fear and wariness every time Superwoman swooped in to help pick up the larger pieces of rubble.  Nor did she go into how her parents had exploded out of their back door, Jonathan wrapping his little girl in a never-ending embrace so tight, it almost hurt.  She didn’t mention the therapeutic power of Martha’s fresh peach pie a la mode, or playing a simple game of fetch with Shelby.  She didn’t say how her mother had rocked her to sleep that first night, after she cried so long the tears had stopped coming, or that she didn’t sleep at all the next two nights, trying not to listen to her parents’ murmured conversations and Martha’s muted sobs.  “I got back to Metropolis earlier today, to talk to Kara and Dr. Hamilton…”  Clara’s fists unconsciously tightened, but Batman opted to not draw attention to that.

     “And Lane?”

     “I explained the whole thing to Lois late this afternoon, so the story will hit the newsstands in the morning.  You might want to pick up a copy for yourself—I’m sure it’ll become a collectible in the future…”

     The Bat finally shifted his gaze away from the lights of Metropolis and turned to face her.  Tilting his head to the side slightly, he gave her a sharp look, “I’d rather hear it from you.”

     Turning away from him, Clara worried at the inside of her bottom lip, hesitant to share her experiences, but after a long silence, she did something most people would consider a little crazy.

     She started to tell him **everything**.

     When she had talked to her parents and to Lois, she’d glossed things over, left things out, and they knew it, but they didn’t press for more, for which Clara was thankful.  She didn’t want to scare them, or have their pity.  With the Bat, it was different.  Despite still not knowing what face lay hidden beneath the cowl, all the time they’d worked together let her know she could trust him with more than her life.  And maybe it was the anonymity that the mask provided that made it so easy, because once she started, it all came tumbling out like a rock fall…

     The countless days shackled in that lightless cell, with no food or water, Granny’s cruel smile as she oversaw the physical and mental torture, Kalabak’s leer as he suggested a different form of torture, Stompa and Lashina laughing as they held her down, forcing her to witness the pointless executions of dozens of innocent people…  And there, looming over all of it, was Darkseid, a sadistic pleasure lighting his soulless eyes.  Superwoman resisted and fought him with every ounce in her being, but one day, after weeks filled with nothing but pain and death, for a split second, a tiny part of her gave up hope.  That tiny flinch was all that they needed, and Darkseid and Granny had pounced.  They tore through Superwoman’s mental defenses, shattering any and all resistance, and in the process, shattering **her**.

     “And Earth wasn’t the first place he sent me to.  He had me lead a number of raids to quash a few uprisings, and then he sent me to this random, nameless little backwater planet… It had one sentient species, barely mastered fire, not a threat to anyone, but Darkseid wanted them gone.  And I made sure they were gone.  I couldn’t even keep count, I wiped them out so quickly…”  Clara paused in her narration, glancing at Batman out of the corner of her eye, positive he’d be repulsed at her admission, but his emotionless mask betrayed nothing.  Taking a deep breath, Clara released it in a shuddering sigh.  “Lois says I need to figure out what sort of legacy I want to leave behind…  That—” she motioned towards the damaged area where Superwoman confronted Darkseid, “—or this,” her hand came back to tap her family crest on her chest.  “Buildings can be repaired, and I can hopefully and eventually regain the world’s trust, but…” she paused again, her eyes lifting to the starry sky, fixing onto a random point of light, “…that planet will **always** be part of my legacy.”

     Another heavy sigh slipped out of Clara and her shoulders drooped.  “I couldn’t even tell Kara that—I couldn’t really say much of anything…  Kara didn’t want to see me, and Emil—he’s terrified of me!  Even after all the years we’ve-”  She stumbled over her last few words and she tightly squeezed her eyes shut and pulled in a deep breath.  "I don't think we have to worry about Darkseid for a while.  I almost..."  Her back stiffened and her fist slammed onto the concrete they were sitting on, cracking it.  "I wanted to kill him!  God knows, he deserved it and no one would've stopped me!  For all the lives he's destroyed, for all the planets he's laid waste to!  For what he did to  **me**!  I wanted to shatter every bone in his body and rip every limb off before I crushed-"  The red glow faded from Clara's eyes when the words got caught in her throat.  The snarl disappeared from her mouth as she shook her bowed head.  “I-I’m sorry,” Clara muttered, as she pressed the heels of her palms to her eyes in an attempt to force her tears away.  “You just want to know the facts, and here I am one step away from an emotional breakdown...”  Her hands dropped down to her lap and Clara’s back straightened, her shoulders drawing back, her chin lifting ever-so-slightly.  “I need to stop being so emotional over this and just move on.”

     They were silent for a time, with the quiet fluttering of their wind-teased capes the only sound coming from them, until a low voice finally spoke up.  “Maybe.”  Batman was quick to notice that despite confident façade she was building up, Superwoman’s impossibly blue eyes were still haunted.  “But Lane is right as well—you **do** need to choose the legacy of what all of this will be.  But…” His already low voice grew quieter, losing its harshness, “When something like this happens to a person…it can rip a part of them away and that hole will most likely never heal…”  Clara’s eyes were fixed on the masked man to her right, taking in every word, and realizing he was revealing something personal—it wasn’t much, but coming from this man, it was a big step.  “You can try to hide from this experience, until the memories of it fill you with so much grief and pain, it will break you.  Or, you can take all of that pain, and make it yours.  Let it become another weapon in your arsenal, another reason why you go out night after night to protect the innocent.”

     Clara gave Batman a small, sad smile, “Just like you do…”

     He returned with a quick frown.  “I thought we established early on that you are **not** like me…”

     Giving a rather unlady-like snort, Clara couldn’t fight back the blush she felt spreading across her cheeks.  “You’re never going to let that one drop, are you?”

     A small smirk finally broke the Bat’s stern visage, “I need something to hold over you…”

     Superwoman could only shake her head at the Dark Knight’s version of teasing, and she said nothing as her gaze swept back over Metropolis, a grin still dimpling her cheeks.  She wanted to thank him, but before she could open her mouth, a chorus of sirens from below split the night air.  “Fire, down at the docks,” Clara murmured and cocked her head as she heard other sirens start up across the city.  “Sounds like a bad one…”

     “Sounds like a good place to start over.”

     She sighed and nodded, pushing herself off the edge, and readied herself to take off for the docks.  The Batman’s voice caught her before she could leave though.  “And Clara…?”

     Hovering in mid-air, Clara turned back to the still seated man, a little surprised at his choice of names—Batman never called her Clara before, it was always ‘Superwoman’ or ‘Kent’…

     “Don’t let me be the only one to know,” he continued, his voice oddly gentle.  “I’m told that sharing can be…therapeutic.”

     And of course, Clara realized, he was right.  After her confession, she did feel a little better.  _A burden shared is a burden lifted…_   A grateful smile grace her features and she glided closer to him.  “Thank you, for listening.”  Closing the gap even further, Clara leaned in, “And don’t forget, I’m a good listener too, for whenever you want to share,” she whispered in his ear, and then gave him a quick peck on his exposed cheek before darting away.

     Superwoman was already at the docks when she heard Batman’s scoff.

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts?


End file.
